Everything's 'shipshape' and 'barrels' of fun for Casey Scott

July 23, 2011

Clockwise from right, Ridgway native Casey Scott, his sons Jacob and Aaron, and his wife Yvonne stand in front of the famous Sphinx on a family vacation to Egypt. Photo submitted.

Ridgway native Casey Scott's interest in shipping and business has led him to sail the seas, often traveling and in some cases living around the world as a shipping manager for one of the world's largest oil companies.
Scott attended Ridgway Area High School and received a B.S. in Marine Engineering and Marine Transportation from the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, N.Y. He put his degree to good use after graduation and gained some practical experience by sailing cargo ships to destinations across the globe.
"My first job out of college was sailing cargo ships, mostly oil tankers. For a guy in his early 20s, I can't imagine a better job than driving an oil tanker around the world," Scott said.
"I visited over 20 countries during that time. I did that for four years and then went back to grad school."
Scott attended Carnegie Mellon University for graduate school, earning a master's degree in Business Administration (MBA). His next two jobs allowed him to further explore the fields of finance and shipping before he began working in his current position.
"After graduating from Carnegie Mellon, I had a short stint at a bank in New York and a shorter stint at a shipping company in Florida before I landed a good job with ConocoPhillips, the third largest oil company in the U.S.," Scott said.
ConocoPhillips placed him and his family in Houston, but shortly after that sent him to the country of Qatar in the Middle East.
"I was ConocoPhillips' lead shipping manager in a $60 billion energy project to develop and export liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar. We built 45 LNG ships over a period of five years," Scott said.
Scott's parents are Larry and Charlene Scott of Ridgway, and he has one sibling, a sister, Linda Scott. Scott is married to St. Marys native Yvonne (Geci) Wiesner, and the couple has two sons, Jacob, 10, and Aaron, 8.
Scott acknowledged his parents as role models in helping him achieve both professional and personal accomplishments.
"My parents wereÂ the strongest influence in my life. TheyÂ provided a safe and supportive home and encouraged my sister and I to excel in life," Scott said. Â
In Qatar, Scott and his family enjoyed the atmosphere; although living near other American families, they took advantage of their location and did a lot of international traveling. They visited local markets and explored the different cultures and sights in that part of the world. Following the completion of the energy project, the family returned to Houston in 2010.
Scott is currently responsible for shipping about eight million barrels of crude oil a month from South America to his company's refineries in Texas andÂ Louisiana. He said the shipping aspect of his job continues to hold his interest.
"As far as enjoyment from work, I suppose boys always like to play with their toys. As you get older, the toys just get bigger," Scott said. "If I have to go to work, I suppose playing with 1,000-foot long ships is as much fun as it's going to get.
"I generally enjoy working in shipping and it's as stable as anything these days. So I guess it's a job that I generally enjoy and that allows me to provide for my family fairly well. That's really the primary driver."
No matter how busy his job keeps him, Scott said he works to keep the focus on his family.
"I really spend a lot of time with my family. I like coaching my kids in soccer and generally spending time with them," he said.
That includes extended family; Scott says he, Yvonne and the boys come back to the area often to visit.
"We have a small house in St. Marys where my family spends the summers. I come up for a couple weeks in July. We also come for Christmas and even made it up for Thanksgiving last year," Scott said.
"Since all of our family is still up here, I really value my time in Elk County and come up as much as I can."